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When is a conveyancer Not a Conveyancer?

A ‘Claytons Conveyancer’ – the conveyancer you have when you are not really using a conveyance.

Whether you are buying or selling house or land the process is called “conveyancing”.

Conveyancing is done all over Australia every day of the week whether the conveyancing is in Toowoomba Queensland, Sydney New South Wales, or the conveyancing is done in Melbourne Victoria, it is all essentially the same conveyancing process.

Queensland, not uncommonly, is different from the other States in Australia. Conveyancing in Queensland is, in accordance with the relevant legislation, done by lawyers.

Conveyancing in Victoria and conveyancing in New South Wales is undertaken by “Licensed Conveyancers”.

Conveyancing in Queensland is, normally, actually undertaken by employees of a Law Firm. Those employees who work on a conveyancing file for a conveyancing client on the conveyance of a house or the conveyance of land, have over many many years been described by different designations.

Conveyancing in Australia is, rightly, strictly regulated to protect consumers to ensure that the conveyancing is done with appropriate safeguards including applicable indemnity insurance. If a member of the public engages “someone” to do their conveyancing that consumer expects that the conveyancing will be done in accordance with the law applicable such that the conveyance is completed and the property is conveyed to them as the new owner or, from them as sellers to the new owners.

An issue that in the last one or two decades has become relevant to conveyancing in Queensland is whether those employees of law firms are entitled to use the designation, – “Conveyancer”.

From a consumer’s perspective conveyancing is such an important aspect of any individual’s life, that the consumer should be entitled to accurately know who they are dealing with because the “conveyancer” who is undertaking their conveyancing plays a vitally important role in that consumers future.

If someone, without any qualifications, training from a recognised institution, or even indeed experience, is entitled by the very nature of their employment only, (an employee of a Law Firm), in Queensland, to describe themselves on official correspondence as a “Conveyancer”, this has the potential to mislead the consumer.

Conveyancing is not merely a commodity to be bought as a “product” off-the-shelf, on an assumption that all “Conveyancers” are the same unless some form of a “warning label”, is attached to the designation.

These are strict limitations apply to lawyers if they are, for example, in training.

Limitations are placed on other professional such as psychologists who may be “provisionally registered”.

Conveyancing in Queensland can be under the effective control of someone who has no formal qualifications in conveyancing, and is not registered to work as a Conveyancer but by virtue only of their employment by a Queensland law firm, may be able to call themselves a “Conveyancer”, LLB it under the technical supervision of a solicitor.

So whether you are doing your conveyancing in Rockhampton Queensland, or you are doing conveyancing in Brisbane, a consumer of conveyancing services does themselves a service by making sure that the individual person with whom they are dealing with on their conveyancing purchase or sale has the appropriate qualifications to undertake the conveyance.

Those responsible for the control of the conveyancing market in Queensland have a duty to consumers to prohibit the use of the designation “Conveyancer” as a title when in reality the use of such a term could easily mislead a conveyancing consumer.

* The professional qualifications of franchisees providing Jim’s Conveyancing services depends on the State in which the relevant service is provided and the legislation governing the delivery of that service in that State. Conveyancing services may be provided by- Vic: Lawyers or Licensed Conveyancers; NSW Lawyers or Licensed Conveyancer; Qld: Lawyers only; WA: Lawyers or Licensed Settlement Agents; SA: Licensed Conveyancers only; ACT: Lawyers only; Tas: Lawyers or Licensed Conveyancers; NT: Lawyers or Licensed Conveyancers.